This post and the next has Q+A with the authors, Collins and Walls. The questions are mine, the answers theirs. BW3 —- Four Introductory Questions Kenneth J. Collins Q. Why did you two write this book, and why now? Who is the audience you are aiming for? A. I came to this project reluctantly as I have indicated in the Introduction to the book. Jerry Walls finally convinced me to become involved in this project after numerous attempts. The reason... Read more

(The following are the summaries of Jerry Walls chapters by Jerry himself). CHAPTER SUMMARIES Chapter One: What We Have in Common This chapter simply aims to highlight our love and respect for our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters. Indeed, it is important to keep in mind the large areas of agreement between us in both doctrinal and moral teaching. What we share is far more important than our differences. We fully embrace our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters as full... Read more

N.B. Ken Collins wrote some of the chapters in this book, Jerry Walls others. More specifically, Collins is responsible for chapters 2,3,6,7,9-12,15-19, and Walls is responsible for chapters 1,4,5,8,13,14, and 20. This post has Collins’ summaries, the next one, Walls’ summaries (BW3). Roman But Not Catholic: Chapter Summaries Kenneth J. Collins Introduction Drawing upon their own personal experience with the Roman Catholic Tradition, Collins and Walls reveal why this book is needed today in an ecumenical context that has become... Read more

In the next two blog posts, the authors provide a precis or summary of each chapter in the book. One preliminary comment is in order. A book should always be evaluated on the basis of what it is attempting to do. This book, though written by Protestants, is not in fact basically a Biblical critique of the Roman Catholic tradition, though some Biblical arguments of course come into play here and there of necessity. No, these two scholars have stuck... Read more

Beginning today, and continuing for some days to come, we will be doing both a review of the important recent book by my friends and colleagues Ken Collins and Jerry Walls, entitled Roman but not Catholic. What Remains at Stake 500 Years after the Reformation (Baker, 2017, 432 pp. $20). This book is important for a variety of reasons, and one of the things I find most interesting about it is that it reveals the same problems with Roman Catholics... Read more

On Dec. 8th-10th the John Wesley Fellows celebrated 40 years of scholarship, fellowship, and frankly blessings for the United Methodist Church, for its colleges, seminaries, episcopal office, local churches, the Upper Room, overseas missions, for Abingdon Press, for its annual conferences, general conferences, for Africa University, and frankly so much more. There are at present over 160 John Wesley Fellows, who have received scholarships from AFTE (A Foundation for Theological Education), and I was blessed to be in the first... Read more

First of all, anyone who is interested in a brief history of coffee should see the Nat Geo special— From Beans to Buzz: The Whole History of Coffee (well, most of it). Here’s a different PBS special, the first part, that tells some of the story. Coffee, after oil is the most valuable traded commodity in the world. Why? Because 500 billion cups are drunk a year, half of them at breakfast! 25 million people at least make their livelihood... Read more

Sometimes I grow weary of pointing out that a precise knowledge of Greek is necessary for a correct translation of the New Testament. Today, I am taking the example of the Greek word δεσμός. This word literally means chain, bond, a string or ligament, or some other kind of impediment that hinders a person. What the word does not mean, in the first instance, is prison, or jail. Hence the translation ‘prisoner’ is not necessary, or really very accurate. There... Read more

PILGRIM’S PAEAN The heaven’s open, the clouds do part To give a glimpse of heavenly art, The light which shines upon our earth Reveals his will, his work, his worth. The highest priest lifts up his hands The Father gives what he commands The prayer of priest who intercedes And speaks of all our human needs. Now sacrifice of lips and hands Is what of us our God demands Since Christ did end in death our need To offer others... Read more

TRAVELING MERCIES They really weren’t wise To travel that far But then pregnant Mary Didn’t follow a star. Unlike the sages Stargazers not kings, Whose journey to Herod Led to horrific things. The shepherds had visitors Who traveled the most Their singing was moving, The heavenly host. It’s quite unlikely Luke meant an inn, For elsewhere in Greek It’s a guest room for kin. So not in a barn But the ancestral home Twas a short trip for Jesus Who... Read more